South Carolina Baseball: Gamecock wins weekly SEC award after stellar week

South Carolina baseball bounced back from a tough series loss to the Ole Miss Rebels by winning a neutral site game in the mid-week over the USC-Upstate Spartans and then returning home to sweep the top-5 Vanderbilt Commodores.

Many of the storylines have been about the improvements from the USC offense (and rightfully so; the Gamecocks had struggled with the bats of late heading into last week), but the South Carolina pitching staff stepped up in a big way against the Commodores, as well.

Eli Jones pitched very well in the first game, and the entire staff in game 2 battled their way to just 2 runs allowed. Garrett Gainey picked up 2 saves on Saturday in the doubleheader.

The best overall pitching performance, though, came from a true freshman in the series finale as Tyler Pitzer dominated the Vanderbilt Commodores to earn SEC Freshman of the Week honors.

In the Vandy start (the first of his South Carolina baseball career), Pitzer pitched 6 1/3 innings without surrendering an earned run. He also struck out 9 Commodore batters while surrendering just 1 walk and 3 hits. The freshman picked up the sweep-clinching win in the series with the performance.

It wasn't Pitzer's only win of the week, though, as he earned the Gamecocks' victory against USC-Upstate on Tuesday, as well. In that game, he struck out 2 batters in 2 hitless and scoreless innings of relief work. In a game in which USC-Upstate scored 8 times, they didn't plate a run against Pitzer.

On the season, Pitzer is now 4-0 with a microscopic 0.48 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. He has a 29/7 K/BB ratio and has only given up one extra-base hit (a double) in 18 2/3 innings this year.

It is safe to say the youngster has earned more time in the Gamecock starting rotation moving forward in SEC play. He may have his chance to start again this weekend when the Gamecocks take on the Alabama Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa.